Chiefs sign linebacker Jordan Campbell to reserve-futures contract

The Chiefs signed undrafted rookie linebacker Jordan Campbell to a reserve-futures contract Friday. His agent said the Chiefs plan on giving Campbell a look at fullback, a position he played in college at Southern California.

The Chiefs signed undrafted rookie linebacker Jordan Campbell to a reserve-futures contract Friday.

Campbell, 5 feet 11 and 240 pounds, tweeted pictures of himself wearing a Chiefs jersey during a recent visit to the practice facility. When later reached by phone, Campbell’s agent, Josh Arnold, confirmed that his client would be signing with the Chiefs.

Arnold said the Chiefs also plan on giving Campbell a look at fullback, a position he played in college at Southern California.

“We’re excited to have Jordan sign with the Chiefs and looking forward to him having an opportunity to compete and earn a roster spot,” Arnold said.

Campbell, 25, signed with the Bengals in April out of Division II New Mexico Highlands, where he logged 104 tackles (including 24 for a loss and 10 sacks as a senior). He landed there after a three-year stint at USC, where played in 17 games.

Campbell, who played middle linebacker for the Bengals, finished with three tackles in 24 plays in the preseason and graded out at plus-0.9, according to Pro Football Focus. He did not log any special-teams snaps and was released in late August after three games, though he did make a brief appearance on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” when he took on muscle-bound linebacker James Harrison

The Chiefs are solid at linebacker with Derrick Johnson, who posted one of his finest seasons to date. But the Chiefs’ other starting inside linebacker, Akeem Jordan, is a free agent and fourth-round rookie Nico Johnson got injured during the preseason and wasn’t a contributor, even after he finally got healthy.

At fullback, the Chiefs have Anthony Sherman, a solid lead blocker who graded out as the league’s top best at his according to Pro Football Focus and is under contract for 2014. But the Chiefs lost their other fullback, Toben Opurum, when he was signed off their practice squad by the Texans in Week 17, and have also signed former Navy fullback Eric Kettani to a reserve-futures contract.

Reserve-futures contracts begin when the new league year opens in March and don’t count against the current roster limit. They essentially allow teams to sign players for the upcoming season even though the new season has not begun yet. Only players who are not on an NFL team’s active roster at the conclusion of the regular season are eligible for these contracts.